Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Silence—nothing but silence.

Amidst the quiet, only Qin Jun remained calm and composed, flipping through the ledgers page by page.

She sharply declared, “This is unbearable.”

Long Langbai shouted, “Who the hell are you? Are you crazy? Am I the Young Master of the Demon Palace or are you? You call a meeting on a whim?!”

Long Langbai was losing his mind, grabbing his subordinate’s ear in frustration. “Is this the person you caught? Where exactly is the serious injury? Is the head badly hurt?”

In the midst of the chaos, Qin Jun remained unmoved.

Calmly, she said, “You are the Young Master. I am calling the meeting.”

The system was going insane, and so was Long Langbai.

Qin Jun was not insane, but she was far more terrifying than madness.

“Who exactly are you!” Long Langbai lost control. He had never met someone so difficult. “Can you stop causing trouble for me?”

“Leave! I said leave, can you do that?” Long Langbai paced anxiously. “Put down my ledger! Don’t touch it! Who gave you permission to see the Demon Palace secrets?”

“Someone! Escort her out—far away from here!”

The two junior cultivators recently recruited to the Demon Palace faction exchanged wary glances and cautiously surrounded Qin Jun.

Long Langbai kept yelling, “Don’t damage my ledgers!”

For a moment, no one knew how to act; all they could do was stand trembling before Qin Jun.

“I am Qin Jun,” she said. “You can choose not to call the meeting, but your accounts from three hundred years ago until now are all wrong. You might want to consider who the trouble will fall on.”

Instantly, Long Langbai’s face flushed red. Hearing the name Qin Jun, he completely forgot about the predicament he was about to face.

Could it really be Qin Jun? The famous True Immortal of He Mountain, Qin Jun? How could his goddess suddenly appear in the Demon Realm and even come to the Demon Palace?

“Are you really Qin Jun? Qin Jun of the Lingxiao Sect?” Long Langbai pressed, wishing he could push her into a chair and serve her tea.

“Fake. Believe it or not,” she replied.

Catching sight of the faint thunder-shaped spiritual mark on the back of Qin Jun’s left hand, Long Langbai could hardly believe this was his goddess.

Qin Jun casually flipped open a page. “The format is a complete mess. Even the most basic addition and subtraction are wrong. The general ledger doesn’t balance. The balances of categorized accounts don’t match the general ledger or the remaining bills. How can something solvable with simple multiplication tables be handled this badly?”

With each word Qin Jun spoke, Long Langbai’s face grew paler. By the end, he collapsed to the ground, utterly losing hope in life.

What could he do... After ten days of accounting, it was all seen through at a glance. If his grandmother found out—

Long Langbai felt like dying.

At this moment, only ten days remained before the true head of the Demon Palace, Grand Matron Long Xin, emerged from seclusion.

Qin Jun pinched the ledger between two fingers, disdain in her eyes, and gave a blunt verdict:

“Trash.”

A crushing blow!

Long Langbai cried.

“If this were a novel, it would be exciting; if a thesis, innovative. But this is a ledger. No need to narrate the love and hate behind every penny—rewrite it!”

Long Langbai took a deep breath, finally catching his breath. He stood up, tears blurring his eyes as he looked at Qin Jun. “What should I do?”

Qin Jun smiled, mercilessly delivering the final sentence. “Recalculate.”

Just barely revived, Long Langbai felt like he was about to die again.

“Can’t you salvage it?”

Qin Jun placed the ledger back on the table with light movements that made Long Langbai shiver.

“Foolish child, do you think molding mud or remelting it is easier?”

A soul’s question: this lump of rotten flesh Long Langbai produced was destined to be cut away.

“Of course, if you can innovate through combination, that’s another matter,” Qin Jun said gently as a soft rain.

Long Langbai instantly quieted. He knew his own skills. He just wanted to complete the task, not give up on life. He understood the difference between playing it safe and blowing all assets on a flash of inspiration.

Clearing the Demon Palace’s accounts was the task his grandmother assigned before going into seclusion, meant to train him. If she found out he couldn’t even manage the accounts and handed in this disgraceful, error-ridden ledger, he would be finished!

Long Langbai looked up at Qin Jun as if she were his savior. “Is there still hope for me?”

Qin Jun smiled slightly. “If you call the meeting, yes. If you don’t—”

Her smile vanished.

“Congratulations, you might as well wait to die.”

…

Something big happened at the Demon Palace. The Palace Master’s Order, silent for a century, suddenly rang out.

When the Palace Master’s Order sounded, no one in the Demon Palace could refuse.

Everyone in the Demon Palace held a Palace Master’s Order, but only those of the Grand Matron and the Young Master could command the entire palace. It hadn’t sounded in a hundred years; why now?

At Dragon Head Plain, Demon Palace, it was livelier than it had been in five centuries.

The Demon Palace was one of the most powerful organizations in the Demon Realm, with three thousand disciples inside. Aside from a few voluntary recruits, most were captured laborers forced to mine, scattered across the realm. Upon hearing the order, regardless of rank or status, all rushed in from all directions.

The sky over the Demon Realm was always gloomy—no sun, only gray skies and darker nights. But today, streaks of dark light illuminated the heavens.

“What’s happening at the Demon Palace?”

Outside the palace, people gazed upward, curious.

“No one knows. The last time the Heavenly Imperial Institute summoned the eighteen palaces of the Demon Realm, the old palace master of the Demon Palace showed signs of the five declines of a celestial being and had been in seclusion for recovery. Maybe it’s related.”

“Don’t rush; just wait and see. In this tiny Demon Realm, the truth will come out sooner or later…”

…

The Demon Palace was an influential organization in the Demon Realm, founded singlehandedly by Grand Matron Long Xin five centuries ago. It was located on Canglang Mountain at Dragon Head Plain, behind the most fiercely corrupted Devil Abyss, adjacent to the Mingcang River, bordered by a swampy wasteland. The headquarters sat on the only open flatland in this barren land.

Today, the Demon Palace had seven hall masters, each with several subordinates, totaling three thousand members. Amid the chaotic factions of the Demon Realm, it was a formidable force.

“A big company,” Qin Jun commented.

But that wasn’t important. What mattered was why the initially passive and resistant host chose now to confront all the Demon Palace hall masters. Her body was still weak—after three steps she needed to gasp for breath, and a single punch threatened to shatter her fragile form again.

Why was this black laborer so confident?

Wasn’t the priority to gain the Young Master’s approval, secure the Palace Master’s Order to enter the palace, and then climb step by step to become the Palace Master, obtaining the precious Supreme Palace Master’s Order?

Wasn’t it?

The system snapped back to attention, noticing the unique Supreme Palace Master’s Order made of Kunlun jade flying up and down in Qin Jun’s hand. As her white wrist flexed, the tassels swept through the air like a lively bird.

The system screamed sharply again: This was the Palace Master’s Order! The Supreme Palace Master’s Order that symbolized the Palace Master’s identity! How could the host casually toss such an important item around?

“This? Long Langbai gave it to me. He said there’s a whole stack and told me to play with them.”

Many Palace Master’s Orders existed; everyone in the Demon Palace had one, but only two Supreme Palace Master’s Orders could command the entire palace—one held by Grand Matron Long Xin, the other by acting Young Master Long Langbai.

Now, it was in Qin Jun’s hands.

Qin Jun ignored the system’s frantic noise and quietly stood on the rooftop of Lanqing Hall, watching the seven hall masters arrive one by one, with the remaining disciples gathered outside in a messy cluster.

Disorganized, utterly lacking discipline.

Their clothing was inconsistent, styles varied, but all shared the same rebellious spirit.

Even though most were captured laborers forced into black labor, there was no sign of management—just a bunch of defiant souls, each probably believing they’d meet the performance standards within ten years and smoothly wash their hands clean to become elites of the Heavenly Imperial Institute.

Qin Jun lowered her gaze, matching faces to names on the roster. The small groups scattered about made it obvious how fractured the Demon Palace truly was.

Sure enough, two men already locked eyes and were about to draw weapons.

“What’re you staring at!”

“Mind your own business!”

“What, you wanna do something about it? Try me!”

“Try it if you dare!”

With a bang, their heads collided like two horned bulls, neither willing to back down.

Qin Jun thought, “…This is the Demon Palace?”

Not only was the financial situation worrying, but the staff quality was also deplorable. Even their quarrels resembled kindergarten brawls.

Long Langbai proudly lifted his head. “This is the mightiest Demon Palace in the Demon Realm!”

Qin Jun turned her gaze, her cold deathly stare made Long Langbai lower his head in shame.

“Organizational structure chaotic, employees’ quality questionable, leadership can’t even balance accounts. Aside from numbers, what advantage do you have? Oh, more people means more mouths to feed. Anything else worth noting?”

Long Langbai: “...Stop talking, please, just stop.”

Qin Jun looked up, her eyes as serene as still water.

Fortunately, Long Langbai had no sudden inspirations. A worker fears not an incompetent leader, but one who is both incompetent and impulsive.

Like the system.

The ambitious but brainless system meddled and questioned her wise decisions.

System: “Host, this approach is still not cautious enough. Suggest plan improvement.”

Here we go again.

Does it understand the value of the leading talent introduced by the Heavenly Young Master’s plan? Or grasp the significance of overseeing billion-yuan research projects?

The system did not. It only knew to follow rules and routines.

Sure enough, the world was just a makeshift troupe.

Qin Jun thought so.

The system couldn’t comprehend why Qin Jun gathered everyone but then stood on the rooftop watching. “Host, to improve colleagues’ impressions of you, suggest a close-knit, coaxing approach. Clinging only to the Demon Palace Young Master’s thigh harms your moral reputation, disrupts unity, and hinders task progress.”

Qin Jun didn’t even blink. “This is a leaderless group discussion. When circumstances are unknown, preemptive moves and thorough observation of employees’ characters are crucial. It’s a necessary step in group interviews for major companies.”

Oh, that made sense.

The system fell silent again.

The Demon Palace members were puzzled. They expected Grand Matron Long Xin to emerge early and sound the Palace Master’s Order, but it was Long Langbai?

They bore no ill will toward Long Langbai—just as long as he didn’t boss them around. But who was the woman standing beside him?

When did the Demon Palace have such a beautiful woman? Long Langbai’s fiancée? Were they here to announce a wedding?

“Long Xiaobai! You sounded the Palace Master’s Order? Where is Grand Matron Long Xin?” A fiery red-haired man with a burning aura said, “Didn’t I tell you not to bother me unless necessary?”

He cast a glance over Qin Jun.

She was stunning—beautiful and pure, too clean to belong in this harsh Demon Realm. Someone like her belonged outside, eternally untainted, an immortal untouched by mortal dust.

Yet now, this ethereal being had come to the Demon Realm and seemed about to become the Young Master’s wife? What a joke! Was Long Xiaobai so blinded by lust as to ruin the Demon Palace? Didn’t he fear infiltrators from the Heavenly Imperial Institute?

The red-haired man was Pei Yan. He shouted, “Long Xiaobai, are you getting married?”

Long Langbai’s face turned deathly pale but he feigned strength. “Nonsense! Looks like this Young Master has been too lenient with you!”

Pei Yan turned to Qin Jun. “Hey! What’s your background? Long Xiaobai may not amount to much, but he is the Demon Palace Young Master. You’d better show some respect.”

Qin Jun’s gaze shifted, cold as autumn water, fixing on Pei Yan.

“First, his name is Long Langbai. You can’t even say it right in formal situations, which is more disrespectful than me to the Demon Palace Young Master.”

“Second, calling a full staff meeting was approved by the Young Master. You are questioning his wise and powerful decision.”

“Third—”

“Concealing the true mineral output of the old mining pit’s demon crystal…”

“Who was it?” Pei Yan froze.

Oh no, he had been caught.

“Confess, sinner,” Qin Jun said.